


Eight Days a Week, Eight Seconds a Kiss

by lovehugsandcandy



Category: Ride or Die (Visual Novel)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-19
Updated: 2020-03-06
Packaged: 2020-09-07 16:16:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 18,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20312392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovehugsandcandy/pseuds/lovehugsandcandy
Summary: Ellie wants to live her life to the fullest, starting with her first kiss. She just needs a little encouragement.





	1. Saturday: I Bet You Dream of What You Could Do

Ellie opened her history book at the table in the break room, humming to herself. She was trying to read but her skin was buzzing, cheeks tight with a smile she couldn’t hide, no matter how hard she tried. She had been coming to the shop basically every waking moment, weekends, after school, ever since she met Logan and the crew.

She knew she barely knew them, she was a reasonable person. But still, she felt at home here, with this motley crew of thieves who seemed to accept her. And she accepted them, especially Logan. She smiled as she thought about him and how he really seemed to care about her. Maybe-

“So is your little rebellion everything you ever wanted?”

Ellie jumped in her seat as Colt walked into the break room, interrupting her daydream. He raised an eyebrow at her on his way to the fridge before opening it up and digging around, emerging with a takeout container and sprawling into a chair.

She rolled her eyes at him. “Like you care…” She turned her focus back to her history book, determined not to cede her valedictorian status.

Obviously, Colt did not get the hint. “Ha. Sure I care. Well, maybe not care, per se. Maybe I’m interested.”

She glared at him as he shoved a forkful of takeaway curry into his mouth.

“What? I’m interested, really, Little Miss Valedictorian. Is the fast life of racing and cars everything you ever wanted? Is hanging with Logan the bad boy as amazing as you dreamed?” He looked like he was trying and failing to keep his smirk off his face.

“Logan is a sweetheart, actually, unlike present company.”

He rocked back in his chair, hand over heart. “You wound me.”

“Ha. I would if you had a heart to wound.” Back to the book, When she looked up again, three paragraphs later, Colt was still studying her. “What?!”

“Why are you really here?” He just looked curious now.

Ellie dropped her highlighter and huffed a breath. He wasn’t letting it go. “I don’t know. I want to experience the real world and here seems like a better place to do it than with my dad.”

He raised an eyebrow. “The real world?”

“Yeah. I want to get my license tomorrow and have some freedom and meet some people and I want-” She stopped short, remembering who she was talking to.

“You want…” He ate more takeout and waved a hand at her, motioning for her to continue.

Ellie felt her cheeks heating up. Crap. “Nothing. It’s stupid.”

“Oh, now I really want to know.” Colt leaned forward over the table, intent, smirk on full display.

She bit her lip and looked at him, slowly exhaling. “I’m 18 and want to have my first kiss. I’ve….I’ve never been kissed.”

Colt burst out laughing. “Yeah, I mean, no shit.”

“What?”

Colt stopped laughing and grimaced, shrinking down in his chair. “Uhhh….I mean, I….I thought it was kind of obvious.”

“Wait, what’s that supposed to mean?”

He at least had the sense to look apologetic. “I just mean that you’re not telling me anything that I couldn’t have guessed on my own.” He shrugged and stood, grabbing the container and throwing it the trash behind him. “You know, Logan is all over you. He would solve that problem for you.”

“Logan?” Elllie narrowed her eyes at him. “What if he doesn’t like me like that?”

“Okaaaay….you guys are always together.”

She couldn’t stop the smile from stretching across her face as she thought back to the night at Brent’s party. “He is super handsome. Nice.”

“Total numb-skull but whatever, problem solved! You can kiss your white knight.” Colt raised his hands in surrender and backed away, towards the door.

“What if I don’t like him like that?”

Colt’s mouth dropped open. “I don’t know! What is this, teen angst therapy hour? You want your first kiss? Kiss him anyways. Who cares?!?”

Ellie looked down at the table. She heard Colt take the last two steps to the door and sighed, but looked up when his footsteps came back. He studied her for a minute and sat down next to her, folding his arms on the table. “Ellie, listen. It doesn’t matter who your first kiss is. And, look at you. You could kiss anyone you wanted to, so easy. So stop freaking out about it. You just gotta trust in yourself. And be patient.”

“Easy for you to say.”

He rolled his eyes and looked to the ceiling. “Christ. Do you want me to kiss you right now? Will that end this conversation?”

“God, no.” Ellie retched. Colt looked offended, so she continued. “I want to kiss someone who at least tolerates me.”

He looked at her, studying her for a minute, longer than necessary, eyes trailing over her face before he spoke again. “That seems like a low bar.”

“Well, you know what? Maybe that’s fine with me.”

“Ok, sorry. I was just trying to help.” Colt stood again to leave when, like a gift from the heavens, Ellie was struck with the best idea of all time,

“Wait…..you CAN help me!!” Her eyes widened. “This is a great idea!”

“What? Excuse me?” Colt froze, midway to the door, and stared at her. “How can I help you?”

“No no no, listen.” Ellie could see it now and her hands started flailing as she spoke. “This is GREAT! You are a guy. You know guys and how they work and what they think. You can help me!”

“I….am a guy.” Colt stared at her as if she had grown two heads, opening and closing his mouth a few times. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Ellie spun in her chair to face him fully and rubbed her hands together. “I want your help in getting me my first kiss.”

“I’m sorry, what? Have you lost it?!?”

“I’m not kidding, Colt! You said it was, and I quote, soooo easy. You implied that I wouldn’t have a problem. Then help me!”

“You know I am all about helping the less fortunate, but no.” He kept staring at her as if she had lost her mind, rocking back on his heels.

Ellie rubbed her hands together. “Yes! It will be so easy. Just, when we go out, as a group, be my wingman.”

“What the…this is a horrible idea.”

“Just a week, only a week. Seven days. That’s all I ask.”

He rubbed his temple. “What happens if you don’t get your perfect first kiss in seven days?”

She nodded, decisively. “Then I will kiss you.” His mouth dropped. “If I don’t have my first kiss in seven days, I will take you up on your offer, to get my first kiss over with.”

“What in God’s name makes you think I am going to do this?”

“Colt, please. Please.” She pouted, eyes wide. It worked on her dad but she definitely didn’t think it would work on Colt. “Please help my rebellion?”

Colt’s shoulders dropped and he looked defeated. “Are you kidding me?!?” He sighed, loudly. “Fine, fine, fine, I will be your wingman.”

Ellie clapped. “Yes YES!!!” Before she could think about it, she was out of the chair hugging him. He was stiff in her arms, immobile. She took a couple steps backwards, watching him shove his hands into his pockets.

“Ummmm…..Thank you.” She was struck by a sudden thought. “But you can’t tell anyone. Anyone!”

Colt scoffed. “Who am I gonna tell? I hate everyone!”

“No kidding.”

“You know, the easy thing to do would be to let me off the hook here.”

“Nope. Nope nope nope. We’re doing this.” Ellie grinned. “This is totally gonna work.”


	2. Sunday: That’s No Way to be Living, Kid

“This is totally not gonna work.” Ellie stared at herself in the mirror. “Can I please put my normal clothes back on?”

“You asked for my help!” Colt stood behind her in the mirror. “I like your normal clothes fine, but you’re not trying to impress me, remember?”

“I feel like an idiot.”

He looked like he was about to agree but thought better of it, putting both hands on her shoulders. “Mona does have a distinctive style, but it’s fine. You just gotta switch it up, get Logan to see you in a new light.”

Ellie grimaced and hit his hands, brushing them off her shoulders. “I mean, it doesn’t have to be Logan….”

Colt shrugged. “Yeah, but he is the easiest person, he likes you, close proximity, we can get it over with so I can go back to doing basically anything but this.”

“What, brooding in the basement, getting into fistfights, and arguing with your dad?” She caught his eye in the mirror. “I’m _so _glad you could find time in your social calendar to help me.”

He rolled his eyes back at her. “Hey, I’m helping, aren’t I?”

She eyed the tube top and miniskirt she had stolen from Mona dubiously, lip curling. “I don’t know if I would call this help.”

“Come on, let’s go upstairs. You’ll see.”

Ellie took a deep breath and followed, unsteadily. This was a bit out of her comfort zone but, now that she started down this path, she thought she owed it to herself to follow through. Logan was nice and super handsome; he was also completely out of her league, but she would try.

By the time she made it up the stairs from basement, she felt awkward. The skirt was too tight and her top definitely needed straps or sleeves or something. She would have turned around but Colt kept a hand on the her back, steady pressure that kept her moving forward. “You got this,” he whispered as they made it the final steps and she walked onto the floor.

Toby was the first person to notice her and, thankfully, he didn’t seem to notice her change in clothes. However, she wasn’t lucky for long.

“Damn, you look as good in that as I do!” Mona looked her up and down, leering, and shot her a wink.

Ximena looked up from the engine she was buried in and smiled when she looked Ellie’s way. “You look great, sweetie.

“What’s going on?” Logan was behind the car, under the muffler, but stood at the commotion. He did a double-take as soon as he saw Ellie, mouth gaping. She saw his eyes take in the outfit, trailing down her body, and dropped the wrench he was holding, which crashed into a can of oil, which overturned like a bad domino and started spilling over the concrete. Logan couldn’t peel his eyes away from her, even with the mess pooling at his feet, and she flushed. The oil keep coming out, spreading under the car, over the floor but still, Ellie couldn’t look away from him. It was like they were the only ones in the room. Maybe the outfit change was a good idea after all.

“For fuck’s sake, it’s like having Muppets work here!” Ellie jumped when Colt ruined the moment. He shook his head and stormed over to the mess, grabbing the can and turning it right-side up. “Ridiculous!”

Finally, this seemed to get Logan’s attention and he looked down. “Crap.”

“You know what?” Colt stood up and glared at him. “You stay away. I think you’ve done enough.”

“But I-”

“Ellie, didn’t you need a ride to your driver’s test?” Colt interrupted him and looked at her, imploringly. 

“Ummm….”

Colt raised his eyebrows at her. “Logan, just take her. Get out of here.”

“Sure!” Logan grinned at her, like the sun shining at dawn. “Let’s go.”

She headed to his car, turning to glance at Colt, in the middle of the mess. He was starting to clean the spill but looked up to throw her a wink as she walked away. Ellie flushed and, smiling, followed Logan to his car.

~~~~~

Kelso’s was packed for Ellie’s victory dinner when the gang headed inside to pick up their order. There was a bit of a wait and they settled against a high-top, overlooking the street, watching cars speed by and the sun sink down.

“Well?” Colt ducked his head to speak softly. “Did it work?”

Ellie shot him a dirty look. “We did not kiss at my driver’s test, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Why not? The setup was there!” He looked affronted. “It was perfect!”

“I was too busy worrying about getting my license!”

He rubbed his eyes. “I’m starting to think the reason this hasn’t happened for you is because you’re shooting yourself in the foot.”

“It was a bad time! I was already nervous!” Ellie played with her fingers under the table. “I didn’t want to mess it up with him.”

Colt studied her for a moment. “…You really like him, don’t you?”

She grinned, more to herself than him. “…Maybe.”

“Hmmm….” He looked at her for a minute, teeth digging into his lower lip. “Maybe it would be easier if it was someone you didn’t care about….” He glanced around and nudged her with an elbow, raising his chin at a stool in the corner. “What about him?”

Ellie peered over, through the crowd, and scowled. “Seriously? That guy looks like he’s 45 and is missing most of his teeth! What the hell?!?” She elbowed him as he laughed, snug against her at the crowded table.

“How about her?” He nodded to an elderly woman with a cane, edging through the door carefully.

She glared at him, unable to keep the smile off her face. “I think we are going in the wrong demographic direction here!”

“Well, I think there was a baby somewhere around here, would that count?” He shrugged at her, looking around the room. “I’m trying here!”

“Colt!”

“I’m just saying, you would totally be in with-”

She elbowed him again, starting to laugh herself. “You jerk! You-”

“What are you guys talking about?” Ximena cut in from Ellie’s other side and she and Colt turned their heads in unison.

Ellie thought, desperately, for something to say, a lie to cover up the embarrassing truth. Before her brain started working, Colt jumped in, quick. “I was just teasing Ellie about her driving test. She said it was her lowest test score ever.”

Ximena put her arm around Ellie and squeezed her close. “Don’t listen to him, sweetie, you did amazing.”

Ellie turned to Colt, surprised, and mouthed a quick th_ank you_ to him. He smirked back and winked, then turned to the window to look at a pair of bikes. Ellie just stared at his profile, lost in thought.

Finally, he rolled his eyes and turned back to her. “Are you just going to glare at me, or are you going to do something?”

She jumped and could feel the blush starting to stain her cheeks. “What do you…?”

“Here.” He put his arms around her and maneuvered her so that they effectively switched seats, putting her next to Logan with a smirk. “You’re welcome.”


	3. Monday:  I Was Young and I was Selfish

Ellie pulled into the shop, driving her very own freaking car, through the bay doors, carrying her very own license, smiling ear-to-ear. This was amazing! Her time on the bus was over!

She jumped out, spring in her step, and made it five steps before almost walking straight into Logan. “Oof.”

He caught her, strong hands wrapped around her forearms. “Hi, troublemaker.”

She looked up and flushed. He really was impossibly handsome; she definitely wouldn’t mind if he was her first kiss. Maybe Colt was right and she was really getting in her own way. She had just started daydreaming about how soft his lips would be and what it would actually be like to kiss someone when he interrupted her.

“Uhhh…Ellie?”

She snapped to attention. “Yeah?”

“Your car is rolling away.”

She turned and froze. Her car was, indeed, moving, rolling down the slight incline of the shop, headed towards a giant toolbox and the lanky figure digging through shelves in. She started to sprint but knew she wasn’t going to make it in time.

“Toby, MOVE!”

Toby looked up just in time to dive out of the way and her car rolled right into a toolbox. Luckily, it wasn’t going fast, but still; the boom of the collision made her wince, as did the three wrenches that rained down onto her hood.

“Oops….”

Toby stood up, brushing himself off dramatically. “I’m ok! I’m ok!” His grin turned to a frown as he looked at her car. “It’s ok! I can fix that! Just the bumper. And a few dents here. And here.” He caressed the paint with a frown.

“I am so sorry! I could have hurt you.”

“No worries!” He squatted to look over her bumper. “It actually doesn’t look bad at all.”

Logan walked up behind her, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Did you put the e-brake on?”

“Apparently not.” She put her head in her hands.

Logan laughed. “Hey, troublemaker, don’t worry about it. No harm, no foul.” Ellie could feel the eyes of the entire crew on her and her face burned. He pulled her into a hug, squeezing her tight before letting go. It made her feel marginally better, though her cheeks were still hot. “Give me your keys. I’ll move it and start fixing it up with Toby.”

“You’re the best.” With a wan smile, she turned to head into the shop.

_I am such an idiot._

Head down, she didn’t notice where she was going until she felt someone grab her wrist. She looked up and groaned, holding up a hand. “Stop. Don’t say anything. I don’t want to hear whatever insult you have up your sleeve.” Colt studied her silently, so she continued. “I know, I obviously don’t belong here, I am shooting myself in the foot, blah blah, I don’t need to hear it from you.”

“I wasn’t-”

“Yes, you were.” She rubbed her temple, headache already starting to form. _I can’t believe I crashed my car already_.

“Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

“What?” Ellie sighed, rubbing her hands over her face. “What, I can’t stay here and embarrass myself anymore?”

“As great as that is for my personal amusement, no.” Colt stood, clutching a spare helmet, unsnapping it and handing it over. “Come on.”

“Are you sure?”

He rolled his eyes. “I don’t know if that look is because you don’t think I can refrain from kicking you when you’re down or because you don’t trust me to get you there safely, but I don’t care. Come on.”

She sighed and took the helmet, looking up at him as he tightened the strap and then brushed her hair away from her neck. “If you kill me….”

“You can haunt the garage all you want. Let’s go.”

~~~~~

Once they stopped, she realized that she could definitely see the appeal. On a motorcycle, everything was more real, the pavement racing by, the air whipping around, the roar of the engine underneath her. She didn’t think she could be converted away from her car, but she could see why Colt liked it as much as he did.

They were outside some bar and Ellie looked around, anxiously, trying to smooth down her hair as much as she could. “Where are we?”

Colt took her helmet from her and put it under his arm. “Just a dive. I was going to head up to the cliff but then I realized that the cliff was not conducive to meeting our two objectives.”

“What do you mean, two objectives?”

“Stop your moping and get you your kiss. Duh.” He held the door open for her and followed her into the dark. The dingy hallway opened up into a bar, exactly as dark and forbidding as it looked from the outside.

There were only a few other patrons here; Ellie would have guessed it was a quiet night but, judging by the exterior of the building and the dinginess of the room, all nights were quiet nights here. At least they could spread out. “Colt, why are we at a bar?”

He shrugged, sitting at a bar stool, putting their helmets on the bar next to him. “I figured a drink would loosen you up.” He laughed when he caught the look on her face. “Relax, relax. It has really good fries and no ones asks any questions.”

“Apparently….” She couldn’t help but look around again. Was it still legal to smoke in bars? She didn’t think so. “How do you know about this place?”

He laughed, bitterly. “What, did you think my parents would ever step foot in a Chuck E. Cheese’s?”

She watched him as he turned to order to a soda and loaded fries from the bartender; what must it have been like, growing up with Kaneko as a father? And Colt never mentioned his mother.

“What do you want to drink?”

“Huh?” Ellie looked up to see both Colt and the bartender staring at her. “Sorry, a soda, please.”

She flushed as Colt raised an eyebrow at her. “You still thinking about your car? Toby will make it just like new, you know.”

“I just feel stupid.”

“You think that’s the worst thing to happen in that shop? Ha.” He tilted his head, thinking. “Once, we were doing electrical work on the lifts and something shorted, dropping two cars straight down, 8 feet to the pavement. I was sweeping glass out of the corners for weeks!”

Ellie chuckled despite herself.

“This other time, Toby had it in his head that he could rig up a NOS system to work both in drive and reverse. If you look closely at my dad’s office, there are still burn marks from when that exploded.”

“Oh crap.” 

“But the worst. The WORST.” Colt leaned over the bar, edging closer, eyes sparkling. “Mona was hooking up with this psycho, this absolute nutcase, and, when she finally smartened up and called it off, this girl spray painted the entire exterior of the garage, all f-bomb this and c-word that, with the evil eye thrown in for good measure, all hot pink like your car. My dad flipped his shit.”

Ellie started giggling and could only laugh harder when Colt threw a napkin at her.

“Not funny! Who do you think had to clean it all up?”

She laughed, playing with her straw; when she looked up again, he was watching her. “Colt? Thank you.”

“Yeah, whatever, don’t-”

“Seriously. Thank you.” She caught his eye, holding it, as the bartender worked behind the bar and as the crappy music filled the room and as she wondered why on earth he was actually being so nice to her.

He coughed, breaking the spell, and rubbed the back of his neck. “Don’t thank me yet. Still working on that kiss. Hmmm….slim pickings.” He looked around the bar until his eyes lit up. “How about six o’clock, by the jukebox?”

She groaned. “Are you seriously picking the worst people in the world?” She watched the man stuff another dip of tobacco into this mouth.

“I got the demographic right this time, at least.” He looked around halfheartedly, sipping his soda before focusing on her again. “You know, why are you so hung up on this? It’s like eight seconds out of your life! Why are you so desperate for it to happen?”

Ellie rested her chin on a hand. She never should have said anything to Colt, of all people. “I guess it’s what it represents. I never did anything except what my dad wanted me to do and I think I missed out, on a lot, you know?”

“Your dad sounds like he’s trying to protect you. I mean, you’re sitting at a dive bar, on a school night, trying to kiss someone you don’t even know.” 

She rolled her eyes. “Out of all the trouble you and the crew get into, this is what you’re worried about?”

Colt’s eyes flashed, trailing down her face. “If I were your old man, I would be very worried about it.” 

Ellie swallowed, grateful for the fries that arrived between them. She wasn’t quite sure what he meant, but she didn’t think she was brave enough to ask. “I don’t know…Maybe he’s going about it the wrong way.”

“He’s doing it out of love, you know.” Colt caught her eye meaningfully. “It sounds like he thinks you’re God’s gift to earth. But it also sounds like he needs to respect who you really are.”

“Yeah.” She studied his face, thinking. “Colt, you know your dad-”

“Stop.” He rubbed his temples. “You don’t even know him.”

“He seems protective of you too.”

Colt looked at her, hands gripping the bar, teeth gnawing his lower lip. “My pop’s never been protective of anyone or anything. Ever.”

She raised an eyebrow at him, watching him eat. “You know, I didn’t think you would care so much about what someone thought of you.”

“I don’t.”

“Then why do you let your dad’s opinion of you rule your life?”

He stopped chewing, mid bite, to gape at her. “Are you seriously giving me family advice? You?!?”

“You know I’m right. You may hate the source, but you know I’m right.”

“Easier said than done.” He looked down at the bar.

“What isn’t?”

He looked over at her, considering her for so long she started to feel uneasy, fidgeting in her seat. He shook his head as the bartender walked over to take their plates, glancing between the two of them. “You know, I don’t mean to intrude, but I heard you were looking for someone willing to kiss you.” He looked meaningfully at Ellie. “I’m single.”

Ellie froze, caught in his gaze. He was cute, surprisingly, for the bar, a little more clean-cut than she was typically attracted to but definitely handsome, especially with the smile he was throwing her way.

Next to her, Colt choked on his drink, sputtering as both she and the bartender gawked. Once he could breathe again, before she could even think of a response, Colt jumped in, voice rough, bar stool dragging across the floor as he stood. “No. We’re actually leaving.”

Ellie stared at him in surprise, watching as he threw some money on the bar, grabbed the helmets, and turned on his heel. Ellie smiled apologetically at the bartender, shrugging, before following, heading out into the warm night.

“The hell, Colt?”

He shrugged. “I thought you wanted them to think you were tolerable.”

“Yeah?”

“Pretty boy didn’t even know you.”

“He would tolerate me enough to kiss me! And neither did chewing tobacco guy!”

Colt stopped next to the bike, leaning over it with a dramatic sigh. “Fine! Just go back in there!”

Ellie stared at him, the crease between his eyebrows, his eyes fixed past her, staring into the distance, avoiding her eyes. She sighed. “You know, you’re right.”

“No shit.”

She rolled her eyes but continued. “You are. I want it to be real, not just some rando you find for me.” She took a deep breath. “So I have a request, an addition to the deal. I want them to think I’m attractive.”

“Wait, what?” Colt did a double take. “What?”

Ellie stared him down, hands on her hips. “I want them to think I’m attractive. Do you think that will be a problem?”

Colt wisely paused before saying anything. Ellie waited, eyes sharp, waiting for the insult. However, she was surprised when he opened his mouth to speak. “I am just commenting, with no ulterior motive, not insinuating anything so stop looking so exasperated, Christ…it seems like you are adding caveats after the fact. I thought they only had to think you were tolerable?”

“_Someone _said it was a low bar. Maybe I am trying to raise my standards a little.”

He looked at her and she was taken aback; instead of the usual insolent smirk or fixed glare, he was considering her, eyes almost soft, voice even softer. “Maybe you should.” He looked like he wanted to say more, to continue, but he paused, just looking at her. “Fine. Fine. They will think you are tolerable and attractive. Anything else?”

“Nope. That’s it.” She smiled. She didn’t know why he agreed to help her but at least he wasn’t being a total ass about it. “Thanks for taking me out tonight. I needed it.”

Colt looked away. “Don’t mention it.”

“No, that was really-”

“Stop.” He put up his hand. “Seriously. I told you. I don’t want you to mention it. To anyone. Including me.”

She blinked, watching him turn and put his helmet on, bathed in the streetlight, before he turned and handed her the spare helmet. Their fingers brushed as she took it, yet another thing from tonight that she resolutely was not going to think about.


	4. Tuesday: Time to Show Your Worth, Child

Ellie had barely stopped the car when Colt was there, right in her space, long fingers clasping the door frame, blocking her from getting out of the car.

“Let’s go.”

“What?” She wasn’t even fully out yet, legs hanging awkwardly in the air between them.

“Come on, we gotta go.”

“What.” She swung her legs back into the car as Colt bolted around the front and threw himself into the passenger seat. 

“Come on, throw it in reverse, let’s go.”

“What is wrong with you?” She didn’t wait for him to respond before she complied, backing out through the bay doors onto the street.

“Take this right.”

“Were you waiting for me to show up so you could ambush me?”

“We have things to do, don’t we? Amorous adventures to obtain?” His voice was dull, annoyed, the snark of the question falling flat. He looked out the window, sunlight shining off his hair. Bathed in the afternoon light, she could be forgiven for mistaking him for an angel at first glance; however, upon closer inspection, the dangerous glint in his eye and furrow of his brow marked him as more fallen than heavenly. 

She narrowed her eyes. “This seems more like you escaping than us going on an adventure.”

“Maybe we can do both.” He shrugged, finally relenting under her glare. “I just didn’t want to be there anymore.”

“Ok…”

“It’s like the orphanage of misfit toys in there. I needed to get away.”

Ellie waited.

“Get on 110. North.” He leaned his head on the glass, distraught, hand in front of his mouth, eyes hazy and unfocused out the window.

She merged onto the highway and waited some more.

Finally, after Ellie had to bite the inside of her cheek three times in an effort to keep from filling the silence, he spoke. “I fucking hate that guy.”

She gave a noncommittal hum as her eyes cut to him. She had a feeling she knew who this was about. “Whatever happened to not letting others control how you feel, Colt?”

“Whatever happened to minding your own business, Ellie?”

She smirked. It couldn’t be that bad if they were continuing their normal pattern of mildly harassing sarcasm. “…Did something happen at the shop?”

“They’re planning something, Logan and Pop.” Colt let out a sigh. “All buddy-buddy in the office. Pathetic.” He looked at his hands. “I can’t believe Pop trusts some dropout loser over me.”

“Don’t call him that.” The words were out before she could reconsider and they hung in the silence of the car. She grimaced as Colt turned to her, eyes narrowed.

“Of course you’re defending your lover boy. Fucking Logan.”

“You know, Colt? You know what I think?” Ellie huffed. “I think you’re jealous of him.”

He stopped short to stare. “Jealous? Of Logan? That’s a good one…”

“Yeah, I think you are.” She didn’t mean to sound so snide but couldn’t really regret the words once they were out.

“Why the hell would I be jealous of him? He’s a fucking idiot dropout who has no idea what he’s doing in this crew. He’s like a sentient piece of bread that wanders around taking up everyone’s space and energy and time like he’s some prince instead of a black hole of suck.”

“Colt…” Apparently, she hit a nerve.

“He’s like if you took me, made him less attractive obviously, and then surgically removed both this brain and his spine and somehow people around here treat him like he’s God’s gift to….”

“COLT!” Finally, her yell got his attention. “Stop.”

“Yeah, just jump to his defense…”

“Well, you’re being ridiculous!” She gripped the steering wheel tighter.

“Am I?”

“It’s not a competition for your dad’s affection, Jesus.”

Colt slouched petulantly against the seat, arms crossed. “Says the person who’s desperate for that asshole.”

“Ok, none of this has to do with me so stop it.”

He turned to her, face paling. The silence stretched on as he just sat there, looking at her as if he was seeing her for the first time.

“What?” She wished, not for the first time, that she could read his mind as he looked to the floor.

A deep breath. “Yeah. Nothing to do with you.” He caught her eyes, a weak smile on his face. 

She had to look back at the road. At least in her case, the person her dad loved more than her didn’t exist, the Ellie in his mind just a figment of his imagination.

“Whatever, forget about it.” Colt shook his head. “Take the next exit.”

“Where are we going?” She navigated seamlessly through the traffic to get to the right lane. 

“You’ll see.”

“Is it somewhere we can lose your attitude problem?” Ellie grinned sweetly.

“I think it’s somewhere I can lose my annoying smart-ass driver.” Colt returned her smile with a smirk of his own. “Park here.”

“Okay…” Ellie dutifully parallel-parked into the space with a beaming grin that only dimmed slightly when she thought about how impressed her dad would be. He might be proud if he saw how well she could drive but definitely wouldn’t be pleased if he saw the company she was keeping.

She followed Colt out of the car, looking around at the swanky storefronts around her, old money and new money combining in a gilded array that made her uneasy. “Why are we here?”

“Because this is supposedly the highest rated spot in LA. After you dissed the dive bar, I thought you might want a change of pace.”

She looked down at her school clothes, at Colt’s leather jacket. “Isn’t there a dress code?”

“Come on.” He loped his arm around her, pushing her along with easy confidence. “Aren’t you sick of missing out on things?”

She had to smile.

“And are you going to let the opinion of these strangers rule your life?”

She smiled wider. “No.”

“Then let’s go.”

~~~~~

“I’m not even going to point anyone out to you.” They were settled at the bar, waiting for menus, and Ellie couldn’t help but stare. The bar, the room, the people, this whole place? It felt like she was transported into a magical fantasy world; everything was gleaming, gilded bar shining in the chandeliers, beautiful people carrying fancy martinis without spilling a drop.

“Why, no octogenarians here for you to mock me with?”

“No, I looked.” He ducked his head to hide the smile. He looked perfectly at ease, sprawled over a bar stool, roguishly handsome with the jacket and the hair and the self-assured smirk. Ellie felt like a fish out of water.

“I don’t fit in here, Colt.”

He swiveled his stool to look at her. “Of course we do.”

“How are you so sure about that?”

“Well, I know that, regardless, we could steal any of their cars. It helps.”

Ellie cracked up, throwing her hands over her mouth to tamp down the noise that escaped her mouth. This was not the kind of place where the noise that escaped her mouth was allowed; this was a place of restrained luxury, where quiet conversations and the delicate tinkle of silverware on plates were the only noises welcome. 

“Excuse me, but you have the most beautiful laugh.”

Ellie turned in shock to the man sitting next to her, She hadn’t even noticed him when she slid into the stool but now she couldn’t look away. She knew LA was full of attractive people but this guy was handsome. Dark eyes, dark hair, lips curving over blindingly white teeth. She definitely did not expect this when she got here.

“What a line,” Colt grumbled under his breath.

Ellie ignored him in favor of her sweetest smile. “Thank you.”

“I’m Jack,” He held out a hand, which she shook, eyes wide. Strong handshake, confident. Damn. Mercy Park Crew, who?

“I’m Ellie.” 

“_Oh boy_.” 

Ellie quickly swiveled to glare at Colt before turning back to her other side.

“Can I buy you a drink?” Jack didn’t seem to notice Colt’s dour face on her other side; Ellie silently thanked any and all deities she could think of.

“Sure!”

Jack leaned over to speak softly to the bartender while Ellie wondered if she agreed too enthusiastically. Was she supposed to play hard to get? What did one do in these situations?

Then, she grimaced when she realized the bartender was sliding her a glass of wine. She could feel Colt shaking his head next to her.

Oh well. In for a penny, out for a pound. She took a sip and had to bite her tongue to force it down. Dear God, this was awful. It tasted like someone poured perfume into gasoline. What the hell was this stuff?

Jack didn’t seem to notice the expression on her face but Colt definitely did, his shoulders shaking in silent laughter. With a huff, she rotated in her seat so she was facing Jack, trying to ignore the distraction behind her.

“So do you come here often?”

Colt groaned and Ellie sighed. She was going to kill him. “First time actually, yourself?”

“I come here a bit; I live just up the block.” Jack leaned closer, conspiratorially. “I actually knew you’ve never been here before; I definitely would have noticed you if you were a regular.”

Ellie flushed. Colt snorted. Ellie’s hand clenched into a fist, almost an automatic reaction to an annoying stimulus, and she tried to calculate how long it would take him to walk back to the shop. Not long enough.

“So what do you do, Ellie?”

“I’m in school.” She realized what she admitted when Jack’s face fell. “College. I’m in college. Senior year. Uhh…..UCLA.”

“What are you studying?”

“Uhhh….business?” She could hear a thud behind her. It sounded like Colt hitting his head on the bar.

“That’s awesome.” Jack leaned in closer and rested his chin on his hand.

“So what do you do?”

“Other than be the luckiest guy in the world to meet you tonight?” Ellie flushed as he took a sip of his wine before resting a strong forearm on the bar. Ellie was sure her face was bright red; no one _ever _hit on her. “I’m a lawyer for a television station. Contracts, intellectual property, all that boring stuff.”

“That sounds really interesting actually.”

“_Boring_.” Colt had obviously picked his head off the bar to resume his snide commentary. She was about to reply to Jack when she heard a muttered “Whoa” behind her. Colt tried to grab her arm, a quick touch to her elbow, but she shook him off.

He then coughed behind her. She ignored him.

He coughed louder, again. Ellie sucked in a breath through her teeth and continued to look away. At this point, she was winning the ‘Ignore Colt Olympics’ and she sure wasn’t going to give up her medal.

Apparently, he didn’t like that. He kicked her stool, hard; Ellie pitched forward and was barely able to catch herself by slamming her palm onto the bar. 

She whirled to see him frantically slashing a hand across his neck. “Colt, what the hell?”

“Abort, abort, this is bad, let’s go.”

She leaned in closer to his face. “Are you kidding me? I am actually not shooting myself in the foot for-”

“No, you don’t understand, he’s-”

Jack stood next to her, sliding off the bar stool from an imposing height. “Uhh, do you know him?”

She rubbed her forehead. “Unfortunately. Sorry, my friends are kinda embarrassing.”

“Hah.” Colt scoffed. “At least your friends aren’t married.”

“What? What are you talking-” She trailed off as she watched Jack’s face fall. Her eyes darted to his left hand; there was no ring but a very obvious tan line marked where one apparently was a fixture on his finger. “What the hell?”

Jack sighed. “I can explain…”

Ellie jumped up, mouth open in shock.

She was about to lay into him, cheeks reddening in embarrassment, when the woman on the other side of him leaned over, long blonde hair falling over her shoulder. “He can explain.” The look on her face was severe, voice serious. “I’m his wife. We are looking for a third to join us. Interested?”

Ellie just stared, blinking, gaping; was she drunk? Off one sip of wine? She was drunk, wasn’t she? Did they just ask her-?

Colt found his voice first. “Holy shit. _Plot twist_.”

~~~~~

“I cannot believe…” Ellie huffed the words out around a hot dog. After their rapid escape from the bar, Colt complained so vigorously that he would die without sustenance that they stopped into the 7-11 for food.

Colt shrugged. “You could have knocked out a lot of firsts tonight. First kiss, first threesome…”

“Shut up.” She knocked her shoulder into his before taking another sip of her Slurpee to try to mask the bitter taste of wine and defeat on her tongue. Whatever the magical combination of chemicals and sugar that were contained in the 7-11 elixir, it was working, tasting far better than the stupid wine.

“What?” He edged his shoulder right back into hers, a warm shove. “You didn’t want to go home with the plastic couple in there?”

“Urgh. No, thank you. I came with you, I’m leaving with you.”

His walking slowed as he looked at her, face softening into something that almost would have been affection, if it were on anyone else. She stopped, turning to him with a question in her eyes, as his eyes traced her face.

“You have some…” His thumb reached up to brush against her face, lingering over her lip. His eyes were focused on where his finger was on her face but, even worse, it was all she was focused on, every cell leaping at the gentle pressure, strangely intimate, the busy sidewalk and ritzy crowd fading to nothing. Her stomach fell to her toes, like she was on a roller coaster, the weightless swoop from flying over the precipice into an unseen fall.

“Colt?”

He dropped his arm as if he were shocked. “You…umm….you had some ketchup. On your face.”

“Thanks?” It was more squeak than speech.

He turned to the car, ears red, opening the door and practically throwing himself into the seat. “Don’t mention it.”

Ellie didn’t bring it up, not at all through the ride back to the shop, but she thought about it the entire way, the sudden warmth in her stomach unfamiliar and weird and not entirely unpleasant. By the time she pulled into the bay, she could almost pass it off as a momentary weakness, a never-to-be-repeated softness from the abrasive force climbing out of her passenger seat.

She clambered out after him, clutching her Slurpee, the sugar still sharp on her tongue after the wine, sweetness always stronger after a bitter bite. She tossed the cup into the trash, watching him wander over to his bike, shoulders tense. 

“Hey.” Her voice carried through the empty shop. “Thanks for taking me out tonight.”

He shoved his hands in his pockets. “No problem. Sorry about the guy.”

Ellie shrugged. “Probably better we didn’t get involved.”

“Yeah.” He grinned at her but his eyes were far away. She was going to ask, to probe, but he continued, talking fast. “Well, have a good night.”

“Thanks, you too.” She nodded and turned to go to her car.

Two steps and she looked over her shoulder, smiling to see he was still watching her. She grinned wider and was gratified when she saw his eyes start to shine and crinkle at the corners, an actual smile from him.

Five more steps and she turned again, giving him a wave when she caught his eye. 

And one more look as she got in the car door, laughing at his exasperated “Good night, Ellie.”

She had a smile on her face the whole way home. It actually was a good night.


	5. Wednesday: Somewhere Between I Want it and I Got it

“Have you ever tried eyeliner?” Mona studied her, circling in silent evaluation.

“At sleepovers?” Ellie felt shy, melting under Mona’s piercing gaze; no one had ever looked at her with such an calculating stare. She was pretty sure that she was coming up short.

“Hmm….” Mona pursed her lips. “Might be a little too aggressive then. Some shadow?”

“Why are we doing this again?”

“Why did you borrow my clothes the other day?” Mona turned to her closet, flinging clothes through the air, digging for something underneath the leather.

Ellie froze, not knowing how to answer without spilling the embarrassing truth.

Thankfully, Mona breezed by her silence. “Just letting you know, I can suit you up a little better than Junior can.” She held up two dresses, a strapless grey and a black number with a plunging neckline.

“Sleeves. Dear God, please, sleeves.”

Mona laughed and threw it at her. “Change.”

Ellie looked at the dress. She may have miscalculated; it looked like a lot less fabric when it was in her hands. “Wait, here?”

“I promise you, you have nothing I haven’t seen before. Many times. Many, many earth-shattering times.” Mona leered. “But you can use the bathroom if you want.”

She ducked through the door, leaning against it with a deep breath, staring at the fabric in her hands. There were sleeves at least, but what was this strap? And if these were the sleeves, then was there nothing to go in front of her boobs? Were those shorts? What was this monstrosity?

It took five minute, three tries, and one tuck of a strap just away, hidden in her bra, but she thought she got it. It was a dress, low cut, straps crisscrossing her back in what she hoped was the right way, and slit that slid so high she could almost see the tiny freckle, near her hip, that had only seen daylight at the beach. She was unsure until she looked up, peering in the mirror for the first time, and damn. Ellie was used to wearing her sweatshirt everywhere but in this, she actually looked hot! She peered closer. Was that her? _Damn_.

She sauntered out. When she emerged, Mona’s eyes widened and Ellie smirked, self-satisfied, striking a pose. It looked like she put the dress on correctly.

“Verrry nice,” Mona purred and leered while Ellie flushed, shooting her a shy smile. “You ready to go?”

“Wait now?”

Mona turned on her heel, shooting her a wink over her shoulder. “No time like the present.”

_Crap._

She followed Mona out, scanning the floor. Toby and Ximena were in the back of Kaneko’s Aylesbury and it sounded like they were arguing about a carburetor. She couldn’t see Logan but she knew he was around somewhere.

As she looked around, Colt stood up from behind his bike. “Mona, where are my-” He froze as he took her in and she felt the blush forming as his eyes swept down her. “God damn.” It was a whisper and, judging from the look on his face, he definitely didn’t mean to say it out loud, following it up with an awkward cough. “Uhh…I mean…well done, Mona.” He rubbed the back of his head.

Mona smirked. “I do know what I’m doing. And your wrenches are by the Maranello.”

“Thanks.” He nodded and turned away, tips of his ears red.

Mona laughed, deep and loud, pulling her through the shop, passing the cars, the tools, the dented toolbox. “Come on, Ellie! You’re driving!”

“Wait, what?” Ellie had to stop every few seconds to pull the dress down so she was struggling to keep up.

Colt also stopped. “What? Where are you going?”

“Why do you care?” Mona was grasping the top of the open door, grinning wolfishly at Colt. 

“But where are we going?”

“We want to see and be seen.” Mona was still staring at Colt as she spoke to Ellie, eyebrows raised. “You coming, Junior?”

Ellie looked between the two, at whatever nonverbal communication that was happening right in front of her, but just over her head.

Colt narrowed his eyes, striding towards them, never dropping his gaze from Mona. “Let’s go.”

~~~~~

Ellie settled up on the sea wall, looking out at the volleyball game happening in front of her and the sunlight glinting off the ocean beyond that. Mona was right; apparently, the boardwalk was the place to see and be seen. Even better, with the crowds and the outfits and the bikinis, she wasn’t so out of place as it was in a garage in Gramercy Park, her dress barely catching a wandering eye.

Mona’s hair blew lightly in the sea breeze, dark strands flitting in the wind and catching Ellie’s shoulder as she leaned close. Colt had wandered off to find fries, at Mona’s orders; directives from Mona were never to be taken lightly and apparently even Colt agreed, acquiescing without a fight. Ellie was in awe of her powers, would have asked for pointers, before Mona interrupted her thoughts.

“You gonna tell me what’s really going on?” Mona’s eyes were assessing, so sharp that Ellie had to duck her head.

“What do you mean?”

Mona rolled her eyes. “You making moon eyes at Logan. You and Kid Kaneko borrowing my clothes for your driving test. You getting so distracted you crashed your car in the shop?” She shook her head. “I’m not an idiot, Ellie.”

“It’s stupid.” Ellie sighed to herself.

“Try me.”

“We’ve been trying to…you see…” Ellie sighed, watching the surfers glide across the horizon. “I’ve….I’ve never been kissed.”

Mona laughed. And laughed some more, until Ellie pushed her. “Mona, shut up.”

“Are you kidding me? All this work for a tiny little kiss?”

Ellie flushed, cheeks red. “I’m 18 years old. Is this like a bad Drew Barrymore movie?”

“Excuse you. A _good _Drew Barrymore movie.” Mona bit her lip, considering. “I guess I thought a girl like you would want your first kiss to mean something, to be with someone who likes you, like really likes you, like a kiss in one of those movies.”

“I dunno, I guess that would be nice but…” Ellie shrugged, looking at her hands; apparently, she had given up on that. “But what if that never happens?”

Mona rolled her eyes. “Jesus, why don’t I kiss you right now?”

“What?”

Mona glanced around, surveying the crowd behind them, and leaned closer with a devilish smirk. “I can take care of that problem for you.”

“Wait.” Ellie was caught in her stare. She felt like she was drowning; Mona had to be one of the most beautiful girls she had ever seen in real life and she was being pulled in. “There were some caveats to this thing.” For this life of her, she couldn’t remember what those caveats were.

“Really….” Mona leaned even closer and Ellie couldn’t help but look down, at her lips, inches from hers. “Why don’t you let me show you how to kiss and you can tell me all about those caveats later?” She tilted her head, eyes dark.

Ellie followed, tilting her head just so, and shut her eyes.

“Fries.”

Ellie pulled back with a gasp, blinking, She and Mona almost…she couldn’t move for a second, willing the breath back into her lungs, watching the giant smile split Mona’s face in two as she looked behind them.

“Hello, Junior. Don’t you have perfect timing.”

“Your fries, Mona.” Colt was gritting his teeth; Ellie could hear his molars grinding above the crash of the surf.

If anything, Mona grinned wider, taking the fries with a wicked gleam in her eye. “Why thank you, Colt. This is exactly what I wanted. But I’m gonna go grab a milkshake too.” She shook her hair out as she stood, radiant in the sun, catching Ellie’s eye. “Who knows? You might get your movie moment after all.” With a wink, she sauntered off, Ellie’s eyes on her back the entire way.

“What was that about?”

Did Mona think she would have her first kiss with someone who liked her? Did Mona have more faith in her than she herself did?

Ellie blinked at Colt, standing with his hands in his pockets. “I’m….” She swallowed. “I’m…not sure.”

He looked like he wanted to say something, rocking back on his heels as she watched, trying to process what just happened.

“Ellie-”

“Damn. Maybe Logan isn’t who I should have been focused on.” She wrinkled her nose, thinking out loud. She was in her own head, but not enough that she didn’t notice his face fall and jaw clench as he looked out at the waves. “Colt?”

He turned away, shoulders raised. “Let’s go.”

~~~~~

The ride back was quiet. Mona wouldn’t stop smiling, humming the verse of every single song on the radio, while Colt just glowered in the back. Ellie sighed. She thought they were over the whole death glare situation, especially after the last few days. Apparently, she was wrong.

She put the car in park, checking the e-brake once, twice, three times just to be sure, as Mona headed to the break room and Colt peeled off towards his bike. She sighed, still thinking. Mona wasn’t wrong. She had always imagined her first kiss being somewhat special, though it seemed like that would never happen for her. But, if she was doing all this work and putting herself out there, she might as well shoot for the moon.

She sighed again, leaning her head against the steering wheel before she climbed out of the car. That grumpy jerk was not going to like this.

She gingerly headed over to him, leaning against a toolbox. “Hi.”

“Sorry about the lack of making out.” He barely looked up at her, hands rifling through the metal.

She couldn’t stop her eyes from rolling. “Eloquent as ever.”

“Hey, I’m trying here.” He shrugged, turning over a screwdriver in his hands before dropping it with a dull thud.

“Yeah, right. Sure. You know, I was thinking something.”

“No.”

“You didn’t even listen to what it was!”

“Didn’t have to, answer is still no.” He turned back to the toolbox in front of him, opening another drawer.

She sighed, blowing a strand of hair out of her face. “Well, I am going to tell you anyway. Mona and I were talking-” The sound from Colt’s throat was between a guffaw and a choke but she ignored it. “Ahem. Mona and I were talking and she thinks I should hold out for someone who like me. Not just someone who thinks I’m cute.”

“Jesus Christ.” He froze, the only movement the blinking of his eyes, looking down at her. “You’re not doing what I think you’re doing-”

“One more, Colt. One more request.”

“What the fuck.” He slammed the drawer shut. “Are you just making this harder on purpose?”

“Well, it’s not like I’ve had any luck with you helping me! And Mona-”

“I didn’t want to help to begin with, ok? This is fucking stupid.” He leaned closer, eyes blazing.

She met his glare head on and leaned closer herself, ignoring his sharp inhale as she scowled at him. He was so close she could see the shades of brown swirling in his eyes, could see every individual strand of his eyebrows, all furrowed into an angry line. “You agreed to help me so let’s just do this and get it over with.” She wasn’t going to back down, no way. 

He crossed his arms over his chest, eyes hard, staring right back at her. She had to will herself not to look away. “This was before all your stupid rules-

“They’re not stupid-” She had to stop herself from reaching out and shaking him.

“They are stupid! I agreed before all these stupid additional rules and before-” He swallowed, still staring at her, eyes inches from hers, cutting himself off. She watched his tongue trace over his lower lip.

“You agreed to help me so let’s just do this and get it over with.” 

They stared at each other; Ellie felt goosebumps start to sprout on her arms, the cool air in the shop sliding over Mona’s flimsy dress. Still, she didn’t move, didn’t look away, and the charged moment held where all they did was wait for the other to fold.

She waited, watching his eyes trace over her face, settling on her lips, shoulders dropping. He ducked his head to look at the ground, look behind her, look anywhere but her. She grinned; he was starting to cave.

And now that she was no longer the singular object of his glare, Ellie finally felt like she could breathe again. 

“Fine.” 

She took a deep breath. “Fine. So my addition…” He scoffed but she continued right over him. “So my addition is that I want them to actually like me. Like, romantically.”

“You sound like a 13 year old.” He hadn’t moved away, was still inches from her. She hadn’t moved away either.

“Says the person who has no functional human relationships with anyone.”

“Actually, says the person who’s kissed someone.”

“Shut up.” She couldn’t help but wonder who Colt had been kissing. Did he have someone he could kiss now? “So that’s my addition. I want them to like me.”

“And tolerate you.”

“And think I’m cute!”

“Christ.” He rolled his eyes. “We have like three days. You think you can find someone else to fall for you in three days?”

The insinuation stung, badly, and she tried to fight back the flash of hurt. “You know, half the shit you say is actually really insulting.” She locked eyes with him.

He only looked away, taking a step back. “Force of habit.” Now that there was some space between them, Ellie could feel her heart evening out, the uncomfortable racing slowing to a more manageable beat.

“Well, if you were half as clever as you thought you were, I might actually get my kiss.”

He turned to her, peering at her for so long that Ellie coughed, awkward. He only shook his head. “Tomorrow. We’ll all go out.”

“That’s all we’ve been-”

“Everyone. _Logan_. _Mona_.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “The entire crew. You can have your pick of anybody.”

“Anybody?”

“Yeah.”

She rolled her eyes. “I don’t think _anybody_…”

“Well, if you were half as clever as you thought you were…”

“What’s that supposed to-” She had to stop herself from stomping her foot. He was so goddamn frustrating. “You know what, whatever, tomorrow. We’ll all go out tomorrow.”

He nodded, looking like he was about to reply before thinking better of it. With one last raise of his eyebrows, he turned and walked away, hurrying through the shop floor.

Ellie watched the set of his shoulders as he cut down a dark hallway before disappearing. She had an eerie sense that, while she won this battle, maybe she lost the war.

She fought back a pang of guilt as she left the shop, driving the familiar route home. Yes, she pressured him to help her and he was trying, in his completely frustrating Colt way. Regardless, after today, she was sure that she could get Mona to kiss her before the week was out; she wouldn’t need Colt’s pity kiss at all.

The thought wasn’t as much of a comfort as it should have been.


	6. Thursday: Give Me Love, I Put My Heart in it

“You sure you don’t want to borrow any more of my clothes?” Mona arched an eyebrow at her.

Ellie shrugged. “I’m good.” She still had to wash the outfit from yesterday but the reality was that she just wasn’t feeling it. She was done with the game, with the primping and the pretending. If she was going to meet someone who liked her for her, she was going to do it in normal clothes. She was going to do it being her.

“Suit yourself.” Mona sauntered away and Ellie surveyed the shop floor. The crew was starting to gather for a night out, needing very little convincing for an evening of fun and debauchery. Colt was standing next to his motorcycle and she wandered over.

“Thanks for planning this.”

“Yeah, sure, whatever.” He had seemed to soften from yesterday, voice still biting but nowhere near as angry as he was. Ellie shivered, remembering the heat of his gaze, being the sole focus of his attention.

“A club doesn’t seem like your kind of place.”

He snorted. “It not. But the club is a good place to find someone to kiss.”

“But I want them to like me, remember?” Ellie twisted her hands in front of her.

“Like you for more than one night, you mean?”

She shoved him as he smirked. “Maybe I just want to dance.”

“Ok. Whatever you say, sweetheart.” He pushed the helmet over his head and swung his leg over the bike before she could even reply. With a mock salute, he revved the engine and sped off. 

She rolled her eyes. Why was she friends with such idiots?

~~~~~

The club was packed when they finally got there, the mass of people dancing and gyrating to a loud base. Ellie felt like her eyes were bugging out of her head. Everywhere she looked was color and light and life, spotlights filtering over the crowd, a joyful celebration of fun and excitement. She watched couples move, just like at the sideshow, bodies so close that there was no distance between them, hands and hips winding together in an intricate and suggestive fusion.

She flushed. She wanted someone to dance with her like that.

Thankfully, she was quickly distracted from her thoughts when Toby grabbed her hand and pulled her out to the dance floor to show her an exceedingly complicated dance that involved jumping. A lot of jumping.

She jumped and danced and bounced like a pinball careening through the crowd, laughing and cheering and waving her hands as she and Toby flew through the dance floor with reckless abandon.

She wasn’t really paying attention, was too focused on the complicated triple-jump maneuver she was trying to perfect, when her second jump slammed into someone and she bounced backwards. She would have fallen if not for the hand that reached out to grab her arm and steady her.

“Ahh! I am so-” She looked up. “Oh. It’s you.”

Colt raised an eyebrow, glancing behind her at Toby’s jump-spin combo. “I thought you wanted to dance.’

“I am dancing!”

“That’s what this is?”

“Oh stop, you fun sponge.”

Colt laughed and she could feel the vibration in her arm, the warm touch a realization of how close they were. The crowd was pushing in on them, people around them on all sides forcing them closer, but she didn’t really want to back away.

“Dance with me!”

Colt eyed the crowd around them. “I don’t really…”

“Come on!” She grabbed his hand and pulled so he was facing her. “You were making fun of me for my moves. Show me what you’ve got.”

His eyes slid down her face and he pulled her closer, hands on her hips, to speak in her ear. “You can’t handle what I’ve got.”

She pulled back to beam at him, his face inches from hers, challenging smirk on his face. His eyes were bright, reflecting the strobe lights above them; she watched them trace over his face, highlighting the cheekbones, the jawline, his lips, curved into a sly grin.

She had been close to him before, very close, clutching him for dear life on the motorcycle, huddled conversations at the shop, exchanging angry words in the dim light. But this? So close she could map the curve of his lips to remember for later? So close she could watch his tongue dart out to touch his lower lip? So close she could see the gleam of moisture it left behind?

Wait, why was she staring at his lips?

She blinked, forcing her eyes up to meet his. “Let’s dance!”

He only shook his head, fond, and pulled her closer to move her to the beat, capable hands pulling her backwards and forwards. She had to suck in a breath. She definitely hadn’t danced like this, ever. His hands were around her waist, pads of his fingers warm underneath the back of her shirt, sliding across her skin as they moved together.

This was how she had wanted to dance.

She stepped even closer so their hips touched, bodies melding together so they were moving as one to the music. Everything else faded away and the only thing she could feel were the points where their bodies touched. She could feel the planes of his chest, solid in front of her, his cheek brushing hers as she tightened her arms around his shoulders, and his hips. Jesus, their hips were so close that hundreds, no _thousands _of inappropriate images filtered through her mind at warp speed, each one racier than the next, making her heart pound faster, her cheeks burn brighter.

Apparently _this _was how she had wanted to dance.

She didn’t know what she was missing, what it was like to be so close to someone. Her lungs wouldn’t inflate. Every nerve on her body was firing, tingling, keeping time with her and him and the music as her heart alternated between stopping and pounding.

Colt pulled back to look at her and she swore her stomach plummeted to the floor.

“Ellie…” They were so close she could hear it over the pounding base, feel it in the breath on her lips. Her eyes flitted to his lips again as they hung in the moment, one beat, two beats, the drop, and Ellie took a giant step back.

She felt like she had been shocked, electricity running through her veins like a live wire.

Holy shit. How….how had she never realized…

“I’m gonna go grab a drink.” Unlike her, he looked completely unaffected, eyeing her with the same confident disinterest, as if nothing had changed for him when everything had changed for her. Before she could form a cogent thought, he was ducking away, off through the crowd.

She needed to take a minute, needed to catch her breath and slow her heart and try to piece together what just happened. What just happened? She followed him, slowly, mind in a daze as she ducked through the crowd.

Did she want to kiss Colt?

_Crap_! How did this happen?

She jumped when she felt a hand on her arm, pulling her from her thoughts 

“Hi sweetie.” Ximena smiled, gently.

“Hi.”

X watched at her, eyes narrowing. “You know, it looks like there’s something going on between you and Colt, isn’t there?”

“What?” Ellie stared at her. “What? That’s just preposterous, he’s such an asshole, that’s just….” She looked over at him, waiting at the makeshift bar. As if he could feel her eyes, he turned, shooting her a crooked smile; she could feel her cheeks heating up. “But…He is a jerk.”

“Um hmm….”

“That’s just ridiculous….that’s just….” She needed to answer, to respond with something, but she didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t breathe. “He doesn’t like me like that.” Seemed safe enough.

Ximena raised her eyebrows, looking entirely unconvinced. “Um hmm….”

Ellie snuck another glance at Colt, stomach falling. _How did this happen?_

Before she could process it, before she could think, Ximena had glided away, sliding through the crowd.

She needed to get out of here. She needed-

“Hey, troublemaker.”

Logan stood before her, with that smile that could launch a thousand ships. She didn’t even notice him approach but it was impossible not to grin back and return the sunshine.

“Hey, Logan.”

“You wanna dance?”

_Yes_. Yes, she did, nodding frantically. A dance was just what she needed to get her mind off of…off of…other things. She wanted her mind off anything that was not Logan. He clasped their hands together as they made their way through the dance floor.

She was so glad that he was an amazing dancer; it made it hard to think of boys who drove motorcycles and tried to help her through her stupid fears and teenage angst and…she smiled up at Logan as he twirled her around, trying to focus on him and the beat and anything other than Ximena’s words, echoing around her head.

He pressed against her back, hands wrapped tight around her waist; she found one of those hands and curled her fingers around his, holding on as the music moved through them and their bodies melded together. He leaned down, hair brushing against her ear, cheeks touching, and she smiled. She could totally do this.

And then she looked up.

At the edge of the crowd, Colt stood, looking through the dancing masses, the gyrating bodies, through it all, right at them, right at Logan. Ellie could feel the heat of his glare from across the room, face roiling with anger or jealousy or some mishmash of negative emotions that Ellie couldn’t help but feel responsible for, couldn’t help but want to wipe off his face. Damn, he was pissed.

And then he looked at her.

It felt like the wind was knocked out of her. Ellie stopped dancing, hips stilling, and their eyes met across the floor. His expression fell, angry glare fading until the pretense, the mask, the carefully crafted persona had left. And, in its place, it was just Colt, his sad eyes watching her, the hurt plain as day on his face. He held her gaze for a moment and, after a quick glance around, he gave a forced smile and spun around, walking away.

Ellie stood in shock, staring at the space where he had just been.

“Ellie?” Logan spoke softly in her ear before he craned his neck to get a good look at her face. “You ok?”

The only thing she knew was that she couldn’t just stand there. “I’m sorry, I have to-” Her mind was racing. “I’ll be back.”

With that, she pushed through the crowd, getting jostled as she ran into dancers and ravers, shoes sticking to the mess on the floor as she ducked and dodged, following Colt’s path outside. Finally, she burst out the side of the club, entering a small alleyway leading to more dark industrial buildings, the slam of the door echoing around her.

“Christ!” Colt stared at her, standing next to the wall. “The hell are you doing?”

“I thought you left.”

He leaned back against the wall, slouched low, dropping his head back against the bricks. “I just wanted some air, Jesus.” He looked at her through his lashes. “Why would you even come out here? You’re shooting yourself in the foot again.”

She could only look at him, mouth open but no words coming out. She didn’t even know what she wanted to say, what she could say.

“Ellie?” He pushed off the wall to walk over to her. “What’s wrong?”

The words weren’t coming. She didn’t know if she could get her kiss anymore, didn’t know how to say that things were all wrong and weird and somewhere along the way she messed up and didn’t know how to fix it.

“Ellie, just go back in there and dance with him.”

“I can’t.” The words were pulled from her. “Colt…”

He stepped closer, eyebrows raised. The alleyway was dim, shadows hovering over his face; she could just make out his eyes trained on her, expectant, waiting.

“Colt…” She took a deep breath. “I don’t know if I want to kiss Logan anymore.”

He paused, jaw clenched; his next words were measured, even. “Why not, Ellie?”

“I think I messed up.”

She took a breath, night air filling her lungs. She needed to continue, needed to say something, some apology, some question, something that would stop her stomach from falling to her toes as she stared at him. But before she could even speak, the door opened behind her. She spun to watch Logan jump out, eyes flickering between the two of them. “You ok, Ellie?”

Colt grimaced as if was physically painful to speak. “Logan, can you just give us one-”

He didn’t even get the question out before the door slammed open again as Mona rushed into the alley. She looked between the three of them and her face fell. “Why is no one naked?”

“What?” Ellie blinked at her.

Mona waved her hands towards Logan and Colt. “They aren’t even beating each other up! What did I come out here for?”

Colt shrugged, palms up in front of him. “I don’t know! What did you come out here for, Mo-”

The door crashed open again and Toby darted out, Ximena close behind. “What’s going on? What did we miss?”

“Christ. You know what?” Colt put his hands over his temples, shaking his head. “This is insane. I’m going back in.” With one last look at Ellie, he pushed through the crew to open the door and storm back into the club, slamming it behind him. Ellie looked at the rest of the crew in turn, shoving her hands in her pocket, the group falling into an awkward silence,

Mona frowned, sigh heavy in the alley. “Well, that was anticlimactic. I need another drink.” She caught Ximena’s eye. “Anyone else?”

“Oooh, me, me!” Toby grinned. “I was just in the middle of inventing this new dance move and it’s a cross between the worm and the moonwalk. I’m gonna call it the Backwards Caterpillar.”

Ximena smiled gently at Ellie before taking Toby’s arm and following Mona. She watched them file inside until it was just her and Logan, standing in the darkness.

He stepped closer, smiling. “You ok?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” _Was she fine? _“Do you want to go back in?”

“Yeah, we can go back.” He stopped with a hand on the door handle, turning back to her with a smile. “Actually, I wanted to ask, before everyone else we know barges back out here again. Do you want to grab dinner with me tomorrow? I feel like I’ve barely seen you all week.”

She felt a flash of guilt, heavy under her skin. She hadn’t really talked to Logan since her driving test. “Yeah, sure.” And maybe she needed a night away from everyone else too, maybe it would do her some good. She slid under Logan’s arm as he opened the door, heading back towards the music and the noise and the actual confusion that her life had become.


	7. Friday: Girl, Don’t Treat Me Like a Stranger

_I **don’t **like him._

Classes dragged and dragged and dragged. It didn’t help that, with every second passing by, all Ellie could focus on was the absolute worst person to be on her mind.

_I don’t **like **him._

She didn’t think she would ever be able to leave this classroom and was counting the minutes, the seconds, until final bell. And then, once it rang, she still had to get through a Yearbook Committee meeting, a meeting with her guidance counselor about Langston, and the never-ending refrain that she tried and tried to convince herself was fact.

_I don’t like **him**._

Once she was finally free, after she had retained nothing from her day and her endless meetings, she was out like a shot, sliding into her driver’s seat. At least she had her car, hood pristine and gleaming in the sun, allowing her some privacy while she drove so she could repeat the same four words over and over and over. 

_ **I don’t like him.** _

When she finally got to the shop, it was packed on the floor; Fridays were apparently a busy day. Everyone was out and working, even Kaneko, who was crouched under an engine to point something out to Logan. She was tempted to wander over to them, but they looked busy, intently focused. So did Mona and Ximena, huddled in the front seat of a souped-up race car, while Toby was working on the engine in front of them. She looked around again but didn’t see Colt anywhere, apparently MIA amid the din.

She leaned back onto a Maranello, watching the masses work, and was startled by shout underneath her. She looked down and there he was, rolling on a wheeled cart.

“You trying to drop this on me?”

“Sorry! I didn’t know you were under there.” His leather jacket must have been placed somewhere for safekeeping because he was clad in a grease-covered t-shirt, streaks dark on one arm and a cheekbone. _Crap. I like him_. “Need a hand?”

He considered her, pausing for a while before finally motioning to the cart behind her. “Grab the creeper and come under.”

She scooted it over and laid down, sliding underneath the undercarriage with Colt. The car was jacked up but there still wasn’t much room to spare underneath.

“Here.” Colt handed her a pair of pliers. “We’re trying to get the driveshaft out.” He stuck a flashlight in his mouth and reached up, hands delving into the parts above them.

“Uhh, Colt?”

“Mmmmm?”

“What’s a driveshaft?” She blew a stray stand of hair from her eyes, looking up at the car above her. She had no idea what any of the metal pieces above her were.

He looked at her, pulling the flashlight from his mouth to smirk. “Why did you agree to help, again?”

“Hey, maybe I just need a good teacher.” She shoved him, gentle, when he laughed.

“In more than one thing apparently.” He reached up, above her, and pointed out three wires. “Clip these.”

“Are you trying to electrocute me?”

“Ha. If I was trying to kill you, you’d know.” 

She smiled, clipping the wires he pointed out, fiddling with the pliers.

“So…did you get your kiss after I left the club? You and Logan?” The words came out fast; Ellie barely caught them before he put the flashlight back in his mouth, staring at the undercarriage above him.

She bit her lip, considering her response, considering him, as he balanced the light between his teeth and avoided her eye. “Not yet.”

“Huh.” He took the flashlight from his mouth, gaze still fixed on the car above them. “You’re still shooting yourself in the foot, then.”

“I told you…I’m not sure I want Logan anymore.”

He raised a dubious eyebrow. “That’s not what you said when we started this mess.”

“Maybe things have changed for me…” She trailed off, not knowing how to continue. “Maybe I realized what I want.”

He didn’t respond, just focused on the metal above them as she watched, waiting. It was quieter here, the noisy din of the shop muffled by the metal and plastic above them. It was its own kind of intimacy, down here, almost like they were alone.

Finally, Colt turned his head to meet her eye. She suddenly realized how close they were, side-by-side, shoulders almost touching above the ground. His eyes were open, unguarded. “And what do you want, Ellie?”

She stared above her, gathering her courage, gathering the ability to speak through the lump in her throat. “Ximena thinks there’s something going on between us.” She hazarded a look at him, between her lashes; he hadn’t moved at all. “Between you and me.”

An eternity passed, the glaciers melted, and Ellie died a thousand deaths before he spoke again. “Do _you _think there is?”

She couldn’t speak, couldn’t help but look away from the sharp gaze, away from his eyes to his lips, so close in the dim light. She couldn’t think. Slowly, so slowly, he reached over and brushed her hair from her face, hand tracing a slow, lingering path from her temple, down her cheek, ending at her chin. She couldn’t breathe.

His name was barely perceptible from her lips and she found herself moving closer, drawn in by the heat in his eyes. She pivoted, turning to face him, barely able to fit under the car, metal digging into her shoulder. He curved his hand around her jaw, touching her face with a gentleness she thought would be impossible for him; her heart stuttered as the softness hidden behind the rough edges, softness she had only seen for her. His eyes dropped to her lips as she edged closer, barely able to breathe. The creeper shifted as they were inches apart, millimeters apart, atoms apart, units of distance meaningless, and then-

“Ellie?”

She jumped at Logan’s voice and then “Owwwwww……” Her hand flew to her temple.

With that, the spell was broken and, before she could blink, Colt and his creeper had flown out from the underside of the car and she was alone in the dark. Crap.

Gingerly, she followed, rubbing her head where she had smashed it underneath the car. Logan was standing over her, shirt stained with grease. He crouched next to her, careful fingers sliding her hair away so he could get a look at her temple. “Are you ok?”

“Yeah,” she muttered, “I’m fine.”

Colt was already standing, too far away, watching Logan’s careful fingers feel around her head. She could tell it was going to bruise.

“Ellie?” Logan was studying her. “Did you still want to get dinner?”

“Oh yeah, dinner.” She was in a daze; she completely forgot about their conversation yesterday. This would have been her dream, only days ago; now, she didn’t know what to think and looked over his shoulder at Colt.

He looked sharp, dangerous, furious, arms crossed and tight against his chest; the angry set of his jaw as he looked at Logan faded when she caught his eye. He only inclined his head towards them. “Sounds like a date.”

He nodded at her before giving her a significant look at Logan and walking away. 

“Wait!” But it was too late. He was already out the door of the shop.

“Ellie? Hey, El?” Logan caught her eyes, concerned. “Are you sure you’re ok to go out?”

She didn’t even know what to say, how to respond; she just rubbed her temple and watched the door to the shop swing in the wind.

~~~~~

“Are you sure you’re ok?”

“If I eat one more chicken wing, I’m going to throw up.”

Logan laughed, gesturing to the table. “There’s still four sauces left to try. And your fries!”

“Oh God.” Ellie put her head in her hands. “I can’t. I’m dead. You have killed me.”

His laughter got louder. “That isn’t exactly what I meant, but you are not the first victim of the Kelso’s challenge. It’s not worth the free meal.”

“I thought the both of us could eat 40 wings! That’s only 20 a person!”

“And _that’s _how I know you’re new.” Logan shook his head ruefully. “No one ever finishes the Kelso’s challenge.”

Ellie groaned.

“But….this wasn’t really what I meant when I asked if you were ok. You’ve been off recently.” Ellie flushed as she looked at him through her fingers. “Ever since you started trying to kiss someone.”

Her hands dropped into her lap. “You knew?!?”

“Mona told me yesterday.”

She groaned. “Seriously? Does everyone know?!?”

“I don’t think everyone knows. Toby probably doesn’t.” Logan shrugged. “Even if you told him, he would just forget the second a new car rolled into the shop.”

“Maybe I should only tell Toby things, then.” Her palms to her cheeks confirmed that, yes, she was blushing. Badly.

Logan put a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Hey, it’s no big deal.”

“Easy for you to say.”

“You know, I would have kissed you if you asked.”

She rolled her eyes. “Yeah. The crowds are just lining up for a pity kiss.” She blinked at the vision behind her eyes, Colt’s face just a few hours ago, cast in shadows underneath the car, eyes trained on her as she edged closer and-

She shook her head. What it real? It felt real. But Colt was also supposed to kiss her if she failed at getting her fist kiss by tomorrow, which was looking increasingly likely. Did he pity her too? Who even knew anymore? She dropped her elbows to the table so she could cradle her head. Urgh. Maybe she needed another chicken wing.

Logan leaned closer to wrap an arm around her shoulder. “It wouldn’t have been pity, Ellie, come on.”

She sagged against him with a groan. “Right.”

“I’m not sure your first kiss is _that _important. I think you have a lifetime of kisses ahead of you.”

Ellie sighed, heavy. “I just didn’t want everything to pass me by anymore.”

“But is it just a kiss you’re worried about passing you by?”

Ellie thought about her week, about laughing in a dive bar, about driving up the highway free as a bird, about hot dogs and Slurpees and the moments that weren’t kisses, but maybe meant so much more.

“I do think you should think about what _you _want though,” Logan pulled her closer, a comforting hug as if he knew her thoughts.

“What do I want?” She had to blink again, furiously, trying to force the memory of dark eyes meeting hers across a dance floor. “I don’t want a pity kiss. I want someone to want _me_.”

Logan dropped a kiss on her forehead. “There. Does that count?”

She had to smile. Even if she didn’t get her kiss, she had great friends who meant the world to her. Great friends who took time to cheer her up. And fix her car. And take her out. And agree to her cockamamie plans to get her first kiss.

She looked up at him, his eyes shining fondly. “I’m not sure if that’s what we had in mind but-”

“Fancy seeing _you two _here.”

Ellie spun in her chair, breaking out of Logan’s embrace, to see Mona behind her, devilish smirk on her face. Behind her stood Ximena and Toby, the latter with his hand raised in greeting. And behind them?

Oh _crap_. Ellie leaned further away from Logan, guilt roiling her gut.

“Is Kelso’s the only place anyone in this crew knows?” Mona continued.

“Hello to you too, Mona.” At least Logan was able to respond. All Ellie could do was stare at Colt as he stared at her.

She shouldn’t even feel guilty. She wasn’t doing anything wrong! But the look on his face? Ellie’s stomach turned.

“Oh no sweetie, did you try the wing challenge? No one ever finishes that…”

Ellie didn’t even acknowledge Ximena, was frozen on the spot, as she and Colt stared at each other. She leaned further away from Logan and, apparently, that was all it took as Colt turned on his heel and walked out the door.

Ellie jumped out of her seat, pushing through the crowd to follow, not even acknowledging Mona’s snarky “Are you just not eating, Kaneko Jr.?” as she darted out the door.

“Wait.”

He was already a block ahead, stalking forward, the set of his shoulders a taut line as he stormed away from her. She put on a burst of speed, flying as fast as she could down the streets of Gramercy Park, pulling closer as she passed graffitied storefronts and fluorescent signs.

“Colt, wait, wait!” She managed to get a hand on leather and spin him so they were face-to-face. She looked up at him, struggling to catch her breath from her sprint; the angry furrow of his eyebrows just took her breath away again

“What.”

“It’s not what it looks-”

“Stop.” He shook his head, gesturing back behind her. “I don’t care what it is. Just go.”

“No.” She planted her feet on the ground and exhaling a sharp breath. She could do this. “I think that-”

“I don’t I wanna be your wingman anymore.”

Ellie started. “What?”

“I don’t want to do this anymore. I think it was a bad idea to get involved.”

“Ok but-”

“I don’t want to kiss you.”

She froze. "What do you mean?” She couldn’t stop the flash of hurt, her face falling. “But I thought-” 

“You shouldn’t kiss on some stupid timetable anyways.” He was looking over her shoulder, avoiding her eyes. “You should kiss who you really want to.”

She nodded slowly. “Yeah, but-” 

“It’s almost been a week and I’m sorry you and Prince Charming haven’t made it work but that’s not my fucking problem.” He still wouldn’t look at her. “So you should just go.” 

Ellie’s mouth dropped and she just managed to catch his hand as he tried to turn away from her, again.

“Please stop….” She tried to keep the tremor from her voice but she was sure he could feel her hand shaking as it clutched his. Tears were starting to sting her eyes as she looked up at him, his face silhouetted by the streetlights. The anger had faded and he just looked drained, jaw clenched as his sad gaze cut away from her.

If it weren’t so quiet, she could have missed his words, barely a mutter, a breath, dissipating into the air around them.

“I don’t want you to kiss me just because you couldn’t kiss _Logan_.”

“What?” The word came out as a whisper, her heart in her throat. “Wait, you think that…? No, no, no, you don’t understand.”

He pushed away from her, taking two steps back. Even that tiny distance was unbearable. “I think I understand just fine.” And with a curt nod, he turned and walked away. She could only watch through blurry eyes as his back faded away until he was gone.


	8. Saturday: I Hate That You Don’t Think I Belong To You

Ellie got to the shop incredibly early, sneaking out before her dad was awake and ducking in the back door of the shop. No one was up yet and she could still hear birds, an anomaly for Gramercy Park, but they apparently felt free to fly when everyone and everything was still fast asleep.

She settled into the break room, textbook out on the table. She knew she could get a solid two hours of studying in before anyone was awake and she was determined to crank this out.

At hour three, with two cups of coffee and croissant wrappers littered around the table, Logan wandered in, followed by Toby, both shocked that she was awake so early. They seemed to accept her feeble excuse of _couldn’t sleep_.

During hour four, she finished her flashcards. Logan came back and hung out, before he needed to finish repairing a muffler on some import. Ximena said hello, giving a quick hug before she got to work. Mona grabbed some coffee and insulted her Langston sweatshirt.

At hour five, she went out for some lunch, a quick walk to the fast food joint on the corner for a burger and fries, which she devoured at the break room table. Mona came back in, commented on the sweatshirt again, and ran through flashcards with her. Ellie was amazed that she was helping; Mona told her that not to get used to it.

At hour six, Kaneko wandered in and did not look surprised to see her at the table, highlighting her world history book.

At hour seven, she ate a bag of chips, rubbed her eyes, and realized that he was avoiding her.

For hour eight, she had had enough but really wanted to finish this chapter for AP English Lit.

Finally, at hour nine, she was pissed. Stretching her neck and back, she stood up and made her way down to the shop. It was lively on the floor, with Toby and Ximena tearing apart an engine, Mona supervising and adding in colorful commentary. Logan was still working on the muffler, crouched behind the car, and Kaneko was in the office on the phone. She looked around again, checking to make sure, and headed down the stairs to Colt’s basement room.

She knocked, sharply, and waited as the shuffling inside came closer and closer and, finally, Colt opened the door. He was still in pajamas and froze when he realized it was her.

“Yeah, I’m still here and I want to talk to you.” She brushed by him and breezed into the room, crossing her arms as he just stared at her. “I think you want to shut the door.”

With a roll of his eyes, he complied and cocked his head, waiting. They stood there, just looking at each other

“It’s been a week.”

Colt groaned. “I told you, I don’t want to be a part of this anymore. Congratulations, I’m glad your pretty boy is amazing, but I’m done with this whole stupid idea.”

“You didn’t think it was so stupid when you were making fun of me.”

“Well, that part was fun.” He considered her, stuffing his hands in his pockets, rocking back on his heels, and finally looked down. “Ellie, I’m done. You got your perfect date, everything’s fine, who cares?”

Ellie watched him, but he wouldn’t meet her eyes, even when the silence stretched and stretched until it became too much to bear. “You know I didn’t kiss Logan.”

Colt finally looked up. “What about your date?”

“I told you, I don’t want to kiss Logan.”

“But……whatever.” He looked at her, considering, then shrugged. “I told you, I’m done. I’m not going to kiss you because you miffed it.”

Ellie shrugged. “I know. That’s fine. You shouldn’t kiss me because you’re obligated.” She wanted to kiss him, more than almost anything, more than she wanted to best Ingrid as valedictorian, more than she wanted to go to Langston, more than she wanted her dad to give her some breathing room, more than _almost _anything. “I don’t want that.”

Because, as much as she wanted to kiss him, she wanted him to _want _to kiss her more.

He narrowed his eyes. “Then why are you here?”

“You are so dumb.” She looked at him imploringly. “I don’t want to be a pity kiss. I want to have a _real_ first kiss.”

“Oh, I know, with your stupid caveats and rules and falling all over Logan-”

“I don’t want Logan!”

He looked at her in shock, palms in front of him, staring at her like she was insane. “That’s what this all was about!”

“No. It was about me, really, the whole time. It was about me just…just living and me doing new things and meeting new people and figuring out what I wanted.” She bit her lip and looked at him, waiting.

Colt only shook his head. “I don’t-”

“Maybe I wanted to find someone who understands me. Someone I like and who likes me.” She waited again, nervously rubbing her fingers. Colt was staring at her, face blank, just studying her. “Someone who would agree to help me get my first kiss, even if it wasn’t with him.”

It was as close to a confession as she was going to get. Colt didn’t say anything, just studied her, inscrutably.

She turned to go. This was hopeless.

She had her hand on the doorknob when Colt finally spoke. “You said you wanted to be kissed by someone who thought you were tolerable.”

Ellie turned, scoffing. “Yeah, well you-”

“I tolerate you.” The hurried words knocked the breath from Ellie's lungs.

She stopped. Thought. Waited. “Okay….you also said that was a low bar.” She tilted her head. “I also said I wanted to be kissed by someone who thinks I’m attractive.”

Colt laughed. “Ellie, you know you’re hot. Come on.” She raised her eyebrows, small smile on her face. Colt sighed. “I think you’re gorgeous. All the time, but especially when you’re exasperated with me, like right about now.”

“I’m always exasperated with you.”

“Part of my charm?” He smirked, hope starting to bloom in his eyes.

She took a step closer, voice low. “I want to be kissed by someone who likes me. Like really likes me.”

“Seriously?”

She took another step forward, into his space, the kind of closeness you reach with family or close friends or people who are about to become more than just friends.

“Seriously?” he asked again.

She nodded, looking up at him between her lashes. He smirked and started to lean closer but she stopped him with a finger. His lips were inches from hers, separated only by her index finger, where she could feel his lips moving as he spoke, feel the soft exhale from his lips.

“I really like you. And I don’t want you to kiss anyone else.”

With that, she moved her finger and captured his lips with hers. She thought she would be nervous, with all the attention she paid to this kiss all week but her nerves were the last thing she could think about, with Colt’s lips on hers, his hands on her waist. It was just her and him and utterly perfect.

She pulled back, butterflies in her stomach, and she couldn’t stop smiling. “My first kiss…” she murmured.

Colt raised his eyebrows at her and pulled her back in, hands threading through her hair, lips and tongue taking her breath away again.

Once he leaned back, her lips were bereft, already missing the gentle pressure that made her feel like she was entering an exhilarating new world. He only winked at her. “And second.”

“Hmmm….” She couldn’t wipe the smile from her face and she was pretty sure that the happiness shining from Colt’s eyes looked very similar to the glow coming from hers. “How about third?”

Colt laughed. “Now you’re really pushing it.”

She bit her lip and pulled him closer, sliding her hands around his shoulders, before ensuring that he wasn’t able to make a sarcastic comment for a long, long time.

When they emerged from his bedroom, they both had lost count.


	9. Three Months Later: When Love Was Found

“So, yeah….that’s how it happened.”

Ximena raised her eyebrows. “You’re telling me that you hatched some scheme to get a kiss in a week during which you crashed your car, got asked to be in a threesome, and went on a date with Logan? And, at the end if all that, you and Colt realized you wanted to start dating?”

“Well, when you say it like that, it sounds stupid.”

“It sounds ridiculous.”

Mona snorted. She was perched on the counter in the break room, behind where Toby’s quick fingers was fiddling with a cylinder, ignoring everyone and everything except for the metal in front of him. 

Ellie was slightly terrified of the glint in Mona’s eyes as she balanced off the floor.

Thankfully, Logan and Colt walked in at that exact moment, grease stains and smears covering their clothes, their skin. Ellie shot Colt a secret smile as he grabbed a bottle of water and sat next to her.

Mona looked between them and flashed a grin. “How about we make a bet to get you laid in a week?”

Colt spit out his water.

“I’m serious,” Mona continued. “I would show you an amazing time, help you get rid of that pesky v-card.”

Colt blinked. Ellie stared.

“Annnnd…” Logan stopped walking forward and immediately reversed, feet moving backwards as he edged away from the door. “That’s my cue to leave. I wasn’t thirsty anyways. It’s fine.” He made it to the door and kept going, voice fading as he kept moving, further and further away, as fast as one could travel while walking backwards. “It’s all good. I’m just gonna get back to work and try to forget whatever the hell I walked into….”

“I’m out, too.” Ximena stood, cracking her neck. “This conversation is no longer safe for work.” She walked past Toby on her way out, his hands still busy, completely tuning everyone else out as his quick fingers worked on the machinery.

“_I’m_ not safe for work.” Mona smirked as she watched X walk away. “So? What do you say, Ellie? Gonna take this bet?”

Ellie flushed, glancing nervously at Colt. He only smirked, gleaming eyes cutting to Ellie as he joined in on the ribbing. “How about that bet, El?”

“Oh my God.” She could feel the flare in her cheeks, her mind involuntarily flashing to last night, and the night before that, and the night before that, and last week, _Jesus_, the memory of skin-on-skin contact and overwhelming pleasure and fiery heat and whispered words and…and… She covered her face with her hands. “I think everyone needs to stop talking.”

Mona winked, hopping off the counter. “Stop talking, start fucking?”

“Mona!” Ellie’s cry was muffled by her palms and she waited until her footsteps were completely gone before she looked up again and glared at Colt.“Nice backup. I would think my _boyfriend _would help me out here.”

“Your _boyfriend_?”

“Excuse me?” She felt her stomach drop. “You’re not?”

He smirked. “It sounds a little high school.”

“Hello? I just graduated high school.”

“Fair.” He shrugged, grabbing her forearm to pull her into his lap.

“You’re gonna get oil all over me.”

“I’ll wash it off later.” The smirk on his face let her know exactly how he wanted to wash it off of her .

She pouted at him, pushing away. “Stop it. What do you mean you’re not my boyfriend?”

"Ellie, I didn’t say that. Whatever, call me what you want. It doesn’t matter.” He leaned back in the chair, pulling her with him so he could curve his hands around her waist. “I’m _yours_.“

Her breath caught at the earnestness in his eyes, how simple it seemed for him to take her breath away. She ducked her head to capture his lips as his fingers tightened on her hip bones, losing herself in the moment and the kiss and the rushing of her heart.

"Whoa!” The shout from behind her made her jump; without the distraction, she wondered if they would ever have stopped kissing. She turned to see Toby staring wide-eyed at them, fingers hovering over the piston. “You guys are together?”

She felt the flush start down her neck as she buried her face in Colt’s neck. “Yeah, Toby,” Colt answered, fingers edging up her side, warm beneath her shirt. He dropped a kiss to her forehead before he spoke again. “We’re together.”


	10. Six Years Later: Pushing Our Luck, Getting Wiped Out

She didn’t step off the curb. She didn’t fall either, because that would have been embarrassing. Instead, the curb moved, warping underneath her foggy eyes, and her feet were already having a hard time on flat pavement anyway, so, when the curb shifted, so did she, falling into Riya as they collapsed together into a pool of limbs and uproarious laughter under the streetlights.

“Oh my God, Ellie!” Riya squirmed under her, and it took a full minute for Ellie to stop laughing and clamber up. “I’m gossiping here.”

She slurred the words. Riya was drunk as she was, so they both had a hard time standing. “I know, I’m sorry, just-the curb jumped!”

“Oh my God.” They linked arms and wandered away from the club, listing as they walked, and Riya continued her story. “So, anyway, my old roommate thought she was dating this guy for a year, a whole freaking year, and it turned out they were in a situationship and he was sleeping with half of Detroit!”

“Oh no- wait, what’s a situationship?”

“Oh, Ellie…” Riya stopped to pull out her phone and check on her ride. “You are so- it’s when a guy doesn’t ask you to be his girlfriend but lets you assume he is while he’s dating other people too.”

“Oh, that sucks. It’s a good thing you don’t have to worry about that; you and Darius have been together forever.”

“I know,” Riya sighed dreamily.

Ellie was looking at her phone, tracking how far away her own ride was, when her heart fell. Colt had never asked her to be _his _girlfriend. They finally _finally_ kissed and, after that, had been inseparable as she finished senior year; since she moved back to LA after school, it seemed like everything had continued normally, just as it had been before. They spent so much time together that Ellie had assumed that… but what if…? “Riya?” She looked up from her phone in a panic. “Riya, am I in a situationship?”

“What?”

She grabbed Riya’s arm. “Colt never really asked me to be his girlfriend. Not even when I was in high school! Riya, Riya, what if-” 

“But-”

“I mean, he made some vague comment to Toby that we were together but he never really asked…”

“Ellie, I don’t-”

“What if I’m in a situationship?!?” Her wail was cut off as her cell phone vibrated and she realized that they were right next to a gray Ford Focus. Or a Nissan something or other? For someone with a penchant for luxury cars, she had always been awful at differentiating one sedan from another, especially after she and Riya polished off far too many glasses of rosé at their biweekly girl’s nights. And maybe the car was black. Actually, it was so dark that maybe it was maroon, but it didn’t matter anyway because the license plates matched and she had to get in. “I have to go.”

“Ellie, wait-” Riya stuttered, looking up at her with confused eyes.

“Text me when you get home, ok?”

“I will.” 

Ellie shut the door and waved, taking in her best friend’s worried expression, one that she was sure was echoed on her own face. The entire ride home, she picked at her fingernails and panicked. _Had he played her for a fool this entire time?_ When the Dryve finally pulled up in front of the apartment, she stumbled out and up the stairs, legs moving quickly, both the anxiety and desire to outrun the spinning hallways making her hustle.

“Colt?!?” she yelled as she flew through the door, ignoring the crash as she dropped her purse to the floor. She heard everything tumble out, wallet and keys spilling across the room, but ignored it in her shuffle to the bedroom. She would clean it up tomorrow; this was more important. “Colt!”

The door slammed open as she rushed in, skidding to a stop at the foot of the bed.

“What?”

“Colt!” She collapsed, pitching herself forward so she could crawl to his side. He was still half-asleep, eyes dazed as he blinked and hair sticking up in pointed tufts around his face. “Whoa. You look like an anime.”

“What the…?” He pushed up on his elbows, still out of it. “What time is it?”

Her brain started again, and she recalled what she had been thinking as tears spring anew to her eyes. “Colt,” she started and, to her embarrassment, broke into sobs. 

“Hey…” He was awake now, eyes flashing across her face, wild and frantic; he got this expression on his face every time Ellie burst into tears: it was a cross between a desperate need to make it stop and an absolute astonishment that he, he who has hatched plans to steal cars and kill cops and a million other precise schemes, that he, of all people, cannot immediately conjure a plan that will soothe whatever ails her. That look was on his face as he realized that she was rapidly becoming a sobbing mess.

“Colt—” she hiccuped and words were painful through her dry, worried throat. “Are we in a situationship?”

“What?” He shifted closer so he could reach her, fingers gentle as they slid down her arm. “Are you ok?”

“Are we-” She had to wipe her cheeks; moisture was blurring his face, turning him into a mirage, twisting and turning on the bed in front of her. Was he moving or was it the wine? “Are we in a situationship?”

“What in the world is a…are you drunk?!?”

“No.” She hiccuped again and then burst into hysterics. “It’s just that Riya was talking about this girl from school and she thought she was dating someone but then we tripped over the curb and I might have left my phone in the Dryve.”

He said nothing at first, only gaped at her before hesitantly speaking. “I think you should-”

“Are we in a situationship?!? Why won’t you answer me!!!”

“What the hell is a situationship?”

“It’s when you think you’re in a relationship but it’s actually not, you’re just hooking up with me and I’m not actually your girlfriend.”

“Ellie, for Christ’s sake…” he muttered.

“You never asked me to be your girlfriend!”

“Ellie, we _live _together.”

Her wail got caught in her throat, and her shoulders dropped as she peers at him. “_Oh_.” He had a point. “But you never asked-”

“Ellie.” He cradled her cheeks with both hands. “You smell like you fell in a vat of rosé and drank your way out. You’re drunk. You’re drunk as fuck and you’re not gonna remember this conversation tomorrow. And that’s the only reason I’m gonna tell you this.”

“Tell me what?”

“I’m not gonna ask you to be my girlfriend.”

“You’re not?” Her heart broke; she could hear the shattering sound in her chest and, if her limbs weren’t so heavy, she would walk out the door of their apartment and head straight to Riya’s where she could self-medicate her mortification with even more rosé and her best friend.

“No. I’m gonna ask you to be my wife.”

Her mouth fell open, and she had to sniff back even more tears. “You are?”

“Uh huh.”

“Like right now?”

“Dear God, not right now,” he chuckled. “You wouldn’t remember, anyway.”

“But like…” Her body wasn’t working; she could think of words, lots of them, but they were failing to make their way to her mouth. “You’re gonna…wait. Do you have a ring?”

He only smirked. “If I gave it to you now, you’d lose it.”

“Colt?”

“Yeah?”

She sat back on her heels to study him, and even that simple movement made the room spin. “We’re not in a situationship, are we?”

“No, Ellie. No, we’re not.”

“Oh.”

“Can we please go to sleep now?”

She nodded, subdued and mollified, breaking into a dumb smile aided by the copious amount of alcohol in her veins. “Ok.” She watched him settle into bed before she headed to the bathroom, hands shaky, dragging on her pajamas over leaden feet. And even though she walked into her bureau, she couldn’t stop the smile from splitting her face.

She had just slid next to him, sheets cool on her overheated skin, when the alcohol compeled her to speak again. “You wanna marry me…”

“I can’t really tell you why at this very second.”

“It’s cuz you loooove me.”

“I would love you a lot more if you just let me sleep.”

She settled her head on the pillow and giggled, bright and happy in the darkness of their bedroom.

“Ellie!”

“Sorry, sorry.” She made it five seconds before the giggles started again, her drunken happiness making her way through her warm cheeks.

“Ellie!” He rolled over to glare at her, but the smile tugging at the corner of his lips rendered the effort at intimidation ineffective.

“You love me!”

He rolled his eyes but responded to her baiting, anyway. “Yes. Yes, I love you.”

“Even when I’m drunk.”

“Even when you’re drunk.” 

“Even when I think we’re in a situationship.”

“Even when you make up terms for scenarios that make no sense,” he murmured with a shake of his head.

“Even when I tear apart this apartment looking for the ring.”

“Even- wait, what?”

She smiled, burrowing into his arms. “Imma find it.”

“You won’t.”

“I will.” She was warm, content, eyes slowly opening and closing against his chest. “I will. I swear.”

But, despite her fervent promises, the only thing she remembered when she woke up the next morning, through her throbbing head and roiling stomach, was that she felt very, very loved.


End file.
